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The word Tōmei is an acronym consisting of two kanji characters. The first character refers to Tokyo(東京?) and the second refers to Nagoya(名古屋?), which are the two major urban areas linked by the expressway.

Officially the expressway is designated as the First Tōkai Expressway.[4] A Second Tōkai Expressway (operating as the New Tōmei Expressway) is under construction parallel to the existing route which will alleviate congestion problems [5] in the near term.

The Tōmei Expressway is an important roadway linking Tokyo and Nagoya. It is the most heavily travelled roadway operated by Central Nippon Expressway Company, with some sections used by more than 100,000 vehicles a day.[5]

The first sections were opened to traffic in 1968 and the entire route was completed in 1969.[1]

Sections with left and right routes formerly carried 2 lanes of traffic in each direction. An additional roadway (carrying 3 lanes of traffic in one direction only) has been constructed parallel to the existing 4 lanes to alleviate congestion. The original 4 lanes are then converted for the use of traffic in the opposite direction.

^Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, 2003 Asian Highway Handbook, 2003, page 54 shows an aerial photo of the Yokohama Aoba Interchange, placing AH1 clearly on the Tomei Expressway rather than the other Tokyo-Nagoya expressway, the Chūō Expressway.